State Senate candidate Sujata Gadkar-Wilcox, a member of Trumbull’s Ethics Commission, issued this statement about election integrity following the arrest of four campaign workers stemming from the 2019 mayoral campaign.
She’s in an August 13 Democratic primary field with former Mayor Bill Finch, City Councilman Scott Burns and ex councilman Tyler Mack in the Bridgeport, Trumbull, Monroe 22nd District.
There is no other right more fundamental to a democracy than the right to vote. The people must believe that their vote must be fairly counted. As the recent arrests in Bridgeport show, this right is imperiled in our district. The general assembly’s decision in 2023 to appoint a state election monitor for the 2023 municipal elections and the 2024 state elections was a step in the right direction. However, the general assembly must take more decisive action to protect the integrity of our elections.
Election monitors must be given real investigative and enforcement powers. They must be able to spot-check absentee ballots on a regular basis.
Ballots should be sent from a central secure location to prevent unauthorized distribution.
All drop boxes should be monitored—remotely by camera or in-person–at all times by election monitors or their designees.
Illegal handling of absentee ballots must carry with it the threat of doing real jail time. As long as the majority of absentee ballot abuse results in merely a fine, the abuse will continue.
We deserve a political system that we can trust. The legislature must act to ensure ethical standards in our electoral process.
